Suction cleaner



@et 31, 7939, B. c'. BECKE'R y 2,177,974

7 sUcTioN CLEANER Filed Aug. 23, 19:57 2 sheets-sheet 1 xNvENToRATTORNEY B. C. BECKE@ sUcTIoN CLEANER Filed Aug. 23, 1937 @at 31, 1939w2 mets-Sheet 2 a '43 4e@ die@ ATTORNEY Patented Oct. 31, 1939 IPATENTOFFICE SUCTION CLEANER Bernard C. Becker, Canton, Ohio, assignor to TheHoover Company, North Canton, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio ApplicationAugust 29, 1937, serial No. 160,399

7 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in suction cleaners of the typeadapted to be converted to and from oif-the-floor cleaning operationsthrough' a 'hose and cleaning tools and further characterized by thepresence of va. rotary agi-v tator in the nozzle which acts to beat thecarpet during normal cleaning operation.

When an agitator equipped cleaner is operating with dusting tools, theagitator serves no usem ful purpose, andpfor this and other reasonswhich need not be enlarged upon, it is the common practice to providemeans for automatically raising the nozzle portion of the cleaner to apredetermined height above the carpet surface and preferably byadjusting either the front or rear wheels vertically and in such a waythat the dusting tool hose lor converter cannot be attached without theaccompanying lifting of the agitator out of contact with the carpetsurface. One arrangement for accomplishing this result includes abarrier member normally positioned to obstruct the entrance to theconverter port, so that it is necessary to first depress the rear endportion of the cleaner and raise the agitator before the barrier memberis shifted from its obstructed position to permit the insertion of theconverter member.

An inter-related nozzle adjustment and converter arrangement of thistype is disclosed in Patent 2,142,810, and the object of the presentinvention is to provide an improved nozzle adjusting and converter portbarrier mechanism, more compact and workmanlike. in design and superiorfrom an operating standpoint in that the barrier member also serves tolock the converter member in its converting position.

And another object of the present invention is to provide a somewhatimproved design for the converter member per se and also for the portwhich receives the converter member with a slight rocking movement justbefore it finds its seat. VAnd in this connection, a converter member of.the so-called rocking type, has also been disclosed in an earlierapplication, filed June 25,

somewhat the same purpose and design, although with one essentialdifference, namely, that in the earlier disclosure the rocking movementof the 55 out of contact with the carpet surface by thel opa hingedbracket supporting the rear wheels and 1936 and bearing Serial No.87,162, and having erator tilting the cleaner bodily on its front wheelseither by the pressure of the hand or foot.

Other improved features of construction and design will be brought outin the discussion in connection with the accompanying drawings, in

which;

Figure 1 is a view in side elevation of a. suction cleanerAV embodyingthe improved features, with details of the nozzle adjusting mechanismshown in vertical section as taken on line I-I of Figure2;

Figure 2 is a bottom plan view of the cleaner witha portion of thebottom wall of the passage leadingto the fan chamber broken away to showthe internal arrangement;

Figure 3 is a view in side elevation similar to Fig. 1 and showing thecleaner body tilted, the nozzle raised and the converter member insertedand locked in converting position.

Figure 4 is a fragmentary bottom plan vview of the cleaner with thatportion immediately adjacent the converter port in horizontal section astaken on line 4 4 of Figure 3;

Figure 5 is a detailed view in vertical section taken on line 5 5 ofFigure 4, showing the con- 25 verter member in converting position.

Figure 6 is a perspective view of the converter member and Figure 7 is aperspectiveA view of the combined barrier and converter locking memberas it appears when removed.

- The suction cleaner herein disclosed follows generally the standarddesign, consisting of a main casing I having a nozzle 2 at its forwardend and from whence the sides of the casing I converge with a slightcurvature toward its rear end where is located an outlet connection 3 towhich a removable dirt bag 4 is attached. Cen'- trally of the maincasingl is the fan chamber 5, generally circular in shape and communicatingwith the outlet connection 3 by means of a rearwardly extending passage58.

Within the fan chamber 5 is mounted a suction fan s ,rotative about avertical axis and driven by a motor supported upon the casing VI andenclosed within a separate casing 1.

Located at the center of the bottom wall of the fan chamber 5 andconcentric with the .vertical axis cf the fan, is a circular inletopening 8 to the fan chamber, usually referred to as the fan eye. .Theian chamber is connected with the space enclosed by the nozzle portion 2of the casing l by an air passage formed by a shallow wall 9 dependingfrom the' bottom wall of thefan chamber 5 and enclosing the two sidesand rear 55 end portion of the Ipassage around the fan eye l, and aremovable bottom plate Il) fitting over the space enclosed by the sidewall 9. Extending lengthwise of the nozzle and immediately above thenozzle mouth II, is the rotary agitator I2 consisting of a cylindricmetal shell having an arrangement of longitudinally extending beaterbars I2 and brushes I2", which project a fraction of an inch beyond theplane of the nozzle mouth. 'I'he agitator is driven by a belt Ilextending through the air passage from the nozzle chamber to a pulley I4at the lower end of an axial extension of the hubv of the fan l. Thebody of the cleaner is supported upon pairs of wheels located near thefront and rear ends of the main casing I. The front wheels IB, II arejour'nalled on fixed bearings I6, I6 located just rearwardly andinwardly from the ends of the nozzle. The rear wheels I 1, I 1 varelocated just forwardly of the outlet connection 2 from the fan chamberand are journalled at the ends of a relatively short axle I8, forming apart of a unitary rear caster assembly which will now be described indetail:

Extending transversely beneath the main casing I is a hollow beam I9journalled for limited rocking movement upon a bearing shaft 20 passinglengthwise through the beam I9 and supported at its outer ends by a pairof vertical "arms 2i, 2I formed integral with the bottom wall of thecasing I and extending a short distance below the under side of the fancasing 5. This beam Il is symmetrically arranged with respect to thecenter line of the cleaner body and at its central portion is anintegral bracket 22 extending radially ln a general rearward anddownward direction and consisting of a pair of spaced arms supportingthe axle Il just inwardly from the rear wheels i1-I1. Enclosed withinthe hollow beam I9 is a plurality of torsion springs 22, one of saidsprings being located in each of several compartments into which thebeam is lpreferably divided longitudinally by transverse webs I9'l(Figure 2). The springs are coiled around the bearing shaft 2li, eachhaving one end suitably anchored against the underside of the relativelystationary casing I and the other end exerting pressure -pon the beam ata point offset from its axis and in a direction to -rotate the beamcounterclockwise on its supporting shaft, that is, in a direction toraise the rear portion of the cleaner body upwardly and tilt the nozzleportion downwardly when the weight of the cleaner is supported by thewheels in contact with the oor surface.

Now, mounted at one end of the beam I2 and forming an'integral part'thereof is a plate-like member which forms the combined' barrier andconverter locking lever 24 shown in Fig. 7. This lever is secured:unwiseA against the end face of the beam and is rigidly secured theretoby mns of a bolt 25 passing through the.central portion of the lever anda radial arm Il formed integral with the beam I9. The lever arm 24 alsohas bearing support upon the shaft 2l about` which it rotates with thebeam I! and projects in ageneral forward direction and substantially inalignment with the rear wheel carrying bracket 22 as shown in Figure 1.

And finally, the lever arm 24 is located at the end of the beam Iladjacent the converter port' side `of the cleaner, in fact, theforwardly projecting arm of the lever is positioned to swing in alimited arc in a vertical plane traversing the passage way from theconverter port into the space surrounding the fan eye 8.

' As clearly shown in Figures 2 and 4, the converter port is arrangedsubstantially at right angles to the longitudinal center line of thecleaner body and directly beneath the bottom wall of the casing I, beingdefined in part by depending wall segments 28, 2C, flanking the entranceto the port and another pair 21, 21 marking the entrance into the inletpassage from the fan chamber and forming the supports for supporting ahinged gate or valve member 2l, normally held in vertical and closedposition by a torsion spring 29. A bottom wall'section Il of sheet metalcompletes the converter port, being generally L-shaped in cross sectionand anchored at its four corners by means of screws 3|. A section of thebottom plate 20 is cut out at Ila to form a slot through which the leverarm 24 may enter the passage from below in its rocking movement as apart of the rear caster assembly.

At the forward end of the lever arm 24 are two upwardly facing detents24a and 24h, the innermost detent 24h being spaced slightly above theouter and both having relatively wide contact faces formed by bendingtheir edges over in L-shape. And immediately beyond the detents 24a and24h is a laterally projecting lug 24c formed by stamping a rectangularsection from the plate and bending it outwardly at right angles. Asshown in Figure 1, this lug 24c is positioned immediately above the bolt25 which anchors the lever arm io its support.

Now, bearing in mind that the rear caster assembly is constantly underthe tension exerted by the torsion springs 23 tending to lift the rearend of the cleaner body and tilt the nozzle downwardly, it follows thatwithout some adjusting means the body of the cleaner would remain inthis tilted position except when suiiicient force was applied to therear end portion thereof to overcome the spring tension. Such anadjustment is provided in the form of a handmanipulated adjusting screw22 having a knob- 32a projecting above the top surface of the casing Iat one side of the motor cover l. 'Ihe screw regulates a verticallyadjustable nut 22 engaged' by a threaded stem at the lower end of thescrew, the latter being rotatively supported by a bracket 34 fixed tothe casing I. As thus mounted, the knob 22a may be' turned in eitherdirection to shift the nut Il upwardly or downwardly in verticalguideways provided for its support. l

As clearly shown in Figures 1 and 3, the travelling nut 22 of theadjusting device is positioned immediately above the laterallyprojecting lug4 24c of the lever arm 24, which forms a stop memberadapted to contact the adjustable nut 23 and thus limit the swingingmovement of the lever arm 24 in an upwardly or counter clockwisedirection. However, it will be observed that there is no ypositiveconnection between the adjusting nut 32 and the lever arm 24"so that thebody of the cleaner is always free to tilt about the front wheels upondepressing the rear end. Thus in Figure 1, the body of the cleaner ismaintained at a constant nozzle height by the position of the adjustingnut Il, although this adjustment may be varied either to raise or lowerthe nozzle by turning the adjusting screw I2 in one direction or theother. Beyond this no variation in the nozzle height will take placeimless sumcient pressure is applied at the rear portion of the cleanerbody to depress the same and overcome the tension of the torsion springs23.

Thus, while the cleaner is being operated at the nozzle heightadjustment determined by regulating the adjusting screw 32, the forwardend of the lever arm 24 projects into the converter passageway anddefinitely prevents the insertion of a converter member therein. But, asclearly shown in Figure 3, by pressing downwardly on the rear endportion of the cleaner it is possible to tilt the nozzle upwardly and atthe same time rock the body of the cleaner on rear caster assembly untilthe lever arm 24 is shifted below and out of obstructing position in theconverter passage. Now, while the cleaner body is in-its tiltedposition, it is possible to insert the converter member 35 into its portand thence into converting position without interference from thebarrier lever 24.

As clearly shown in Figure 6, the converter member 35 is a tubularfitting adapted to beattached at the end of a dusting tool hose, beinggenerally cylindric in shape at its attaching end but reduced to acomparatively narrow blade with flat top and bottom faces throughout itsouter end portion. l

As hereinbefore stated, the converter member together with the converterport are generally of the type shown in the earlier disclosureshereinbefore mentioned and therefore it is proposed not to discuss theconverter arrangement in detail except insofar as it may embody improvedfeatures of design or function.

Since the end portion of the converter member 35 is flattened on twosides and the converter port is shaped to correspond, the former isintended to be inserted with the concave side of the hooked shaped endportion facing toward the belt pulley i4 as clearly shown in Figure 4.Now, in order to insure the converter member being properly presentedand inserted into the con--l verter portA and, having been inserted toimpart a limited but denite rocking movement thereto as' it finds itsseat, there are formed `along the front and rear edges of the convertermember a group of cam projections or indentations (as the case may be)which will now be identified:

Beginning at the inner end of the converter member (Fig. 6), there is lapointed cam 36 with sloping sides projecting from its rearwardly facingside edge. Then immediately forward of the cam 36 is an inclinedshoulder31 facing toward the inner or4 cylindric end of the converter member,and, which as will later be pointed out,

coacts with the detent 24h of the lever arm 24 to lock the convertermember in converting position. And, just forwardly of the shoulder 31and on the same edge of the converter member is a curved recess orindentation 38 serving as a positioning boss for the converter memberwhen" it reaches its final 4converting position, as will presently beexplained.

On the opposite `or forward edge of the converter member (Fig. 4) is anelongated arcuate cam 39 extending lengthwise substantially throughoutits flattened mid-section and somewhat wedge-shape in cross-section. Andfinally, projecting downwardly from the underside of thel cam 39 midwayof its ends is a pointed lug 49 with its endprojecting beyond theflattened bottom face of the converter member and having an uprightshoulder facing toward the extreme end of the converter member. 'I'hepurpose of this lug will presently be seen.

It will be understood that the movement of the converter member intoconverting position is generally endwise, it being only necessary forthe operator to present the converter to the entrance of the converterport and then to push inwardly, whereupon the several cams act to imparta rocking movement to the converter member as it approaches its finalposition, in order that it may clear the pulley I4 which otherwise wouldinterfere with its proper seating across the inlet passage to the fanchamber.

The operation of converting the cleaner for off-the-floor cleaningoperation will now be described: For normal carpet cleaning operation,the cleaner is adjusted to the proper nozzle height by the adjustingscrew 32 in the manner already set forth, the adjusting mechanismpreferably including a visual height indicator consisting of `anL-shaped arm 42 rigidly fixed to the beam I9 of the rear caster assemblyjust inwardly from the end which carries the barrier lever arm 24.'I'his indicator arm extends in a general upwardly and rearwardlydirection, its outer end portion having the form of an arcuate sector,positioned directly beneath and in alignment with an opening or window43 in the top wall of the casing I. The quadrant 42a has a flat upwardlyfacing surface on which suitable nozzle height indications are stamped,such as H, M and L, standing for High, Medium and Low, respectively, andobviously having reference to the different heights to which the nozzlemay be adjusted.

Assuming now, that it is desired to attach the dusting tool hose foroperation with the dusting tools, it is first necessary to clear theobstruction from the entrance to the converter port and this is done bypressing downwardly on the rear end of the cleaner body, the mostconvenient way being to'press down with one hand while holding theconverter in the other in readiness to force it into the port as soon asthe barrier lever 24 has been removed. As already explained, thedepression of the rear portion of the cleaner body simultaneously raisesthe nozzle and removes the barrier arm 24 from port obstructingposition. The converter member 35 may now be inserted, but as alreadyexplained it must enter the converter port in the proper way, namely,with the edge bearing the cam projection 36, the shoulder 31 and thecam'recess 38 facing rearwardly as shown in Figure 4. And in order toprevent the converter member from being inserted in any but the properway, ,a shallow groove 44 is provided along the forward edge of thebottom plate 30 of the converter passage and positioned to register withthe lug 40 projecting below the bottom face of the converter member, sothat unless the same enters the converter port properly, the lug 40would strike the top edge of the port entrance, preventing furtherprogress and thus making it necessary to reverse the converter member sothat it can be properly inserted. Having inserted the converter memberinto the port,

it is then only necessary to force the same inwardly, the direction ofmovement being in a straight line until it reaches the dotted lineposition shown in Figure 4, namely, just in advance of its finalposition with its forward end seating over the front half of the fan eyeand just ahead of the belt pulley.

Now, on reaching that dotted line position it will be observed thatcontact takes place between the forward sloping edge of the cam 38 alongthe front face of the converter member with a rounded vertical abutmentedge 45 near the forward and inner end of the converter port,

and at the same time, the forward sloping edge of the pointed cam Itnear the outer end of the converter member comes into contact with aninclined abutment face at the entrance to the converter port. Withcontact at these two points momentarily retarding the endwise movementof the converter member, it follows that by the ensuing cam action, theconverter member is shifted or rocked forwardly through a small arc andat the same time is finally brought into its converting position asindicated by full lines in Figure 4, (with the cam recess 3l near thefo`rward e'nd of the converter member registering with a correspondinglyconvex seat 41 at the inner end of the converter passage and just shortof-the hinged gate member 28, which has been swung downwardly into openposition against the bottom plate I0 as clearly shown in Figure 5).

Once the converter member has been inserted into its port, it is nolonger necessary to hold down the rear end ofthe cleaner inasmuch as thedetent 24a at the forward end of the barrier' lever 2l contacts theunderside of the converter member as clearly shown in Figure 3, andholds the cleaner in its nozzle raised position. And finally, with theconverter member in position, thel shoulder Il is engaged by the lockingdetent 2lb on the barrier lever. thus bringing about a lockingconnection which holds the converter member to its seat and prevents itswithdrawal by a direct pull on the hose as may frequently occur duringcleaning operations.

Upon completing the off-the-floor cleaning opeation, the cleaner isrestored to its operating condition, merely by pressing down slightly onthe rear portion of the cleaner, thus releasing the Yconverter member sothat it can be withdrawn from its port, whereupon the cleaner isrestored to its proper nozzle height adjustment as determined by themanual adjusting device.

Having set forth the preferred embodiment of my invention, I claim:

1. In a suction cleaner, the combination of a casing includingsuction-creating means, a nozzle communicating with saidsuction-creating means through a connecting `air passage and a portopening into said passage from the exterior of said casing, a convertermember adapted to be inserted into said port for ofi-the-oor cleaning,supporting wheels ior said casing, a bracket Carrying the wheels remotefrom said nozzle and having a pivotal mounting on said casing,tensionmeans acting on said bracket with sufiicient force tocounterbalance the normal load on said last mentioned wheels butyieldable under an externally applied force acting to -tlt said casingin a direction' to raise the nozzle, said bracket having a portionthereof positioned adjacent said 'converter port and adapted to beshifted into positive latching engagement with said converter memberafter the same has been inserted into its port and the tilting pressureon said casing removed.

2. In a suction cleaner, the combination of a casing includingsuction-creating means, a nozale communicating with saidsuction-creating means through a connecting air passage, and a portopening into said passage from the exterior of said casing, a convertermember adapted to be inserted into said port for ofI-the-floor cleaning,wheels supporting the casing at its forward and rear ends, a bracketpivotally 'mounted on said casing and carrying the rear supportingwheels, a spring acting on said bracket to support the normal operatingload but yieldable under pressure applied externally at the rear end ofsaid casing to tilt the same in a direction to raise the nozzle, saidbracket including a lever arm normally positioned to obstruct said portagainst the insertion of said converter member into its port butshiftable out of port obstructing podtionin the tilting movement of saidcasing to permit said converter member to be inserted and be insertedinto said port for oiI-the-fioor cleaning, supporting wheels at theforward and rear ends of said casing, a bracket pivotally mounted on theunderside of said casing and carrying the rear supporting wheels, saidbracket including a spring acting to counterbalance the normal load onsaid rearwheels but allowing the rear end of said casing to be depressedunder an externally applied pressure to raise said nozzle, .a lever armcarried by said bracket and normally positioned to obstruct said portagainst the insertion of said converter member but shiftable therefromin the tilting of said casing to permit the insertion of said convertermember into its port, said converter member .having a shoulder adaptedto be engaged by said lever arm upon the tilting of said casing in theopposite direction when the external pressure thereon is removed,thereby positively locking said converter member against removal.

4. In a suction cleaner, the combination of a casing includingsuction-creating means, a nozzle communicating with saidsuction-creating means and a port adapted to receive a hose attachingmember for converting the cleaner to oi-the-iloor cleaning operation,wheels mounted at the front and rear ends of said casing, a framepivotally mounted on the underside of said casing and carrying the rearsupporting wheels, a spring acting on said frame to counterbalance thenormal load carried by said rear wheels. a manually operated adjustingdevice mounted on said casing and comprising a vertically shiftable stopmember adapted to limit the pivotal movement of said casing in onedirection about the axis of the front wheels but allowing it to pivotfreely in the opposite direction, and a lever arm carried by said frameand adapted normally toobstruct said port but to be shifted fromport-obstructing position to permit the insertion of said hose attachingmember in the tilting of said casing either by said manually operatedadjusting device or the application of a downward pressure on the r'earend of said casing, said lever arm being subsequently adapted to contactsaid hose attaching member to hold said nozzle inraised position and toengage a projection on its underside to prevent its withdrawal from saidport as said casing is allowed to tilt toward its normal position.

5. In a suction cleaner, the combination of a casing includingsuction-creating means, a nozzle communicating with saidsuction-creating means and a port adapted to receive a hoseattachingmember for converting the cleaner to off-thefloor cleaning operation,wheels mounted at the front and rear ends of said casing. a framepivotally mounted on the underside of said casing and carrying the rearsupporting wheels, springs acting at the pivotal mounting of said frameto counterbalance the normal load carried by said rear wheels, amanually operated adjusting device mounted on said casing and comprisinga vertically shiftable stop member adapted to limit A the tiltingmovement of said casing about said front wheels in a direction to lowersaid nozzle but allowing it to tilt freely in the opposite direction,and a lever arm carried by said frame and normally positioned to preventsaid hose attaching member to be inserted in said port but adapted to beshifted from port-obstructing position to permit the insertion of saidattaching member in the tilting of said casing either by said manuallyoperated adjusting device or the application of a downward pressure onthe rear end of said casing, said lever arm and hose attaching membersubsequently coacting to retain said casing in tilted position with saidnomle elevated above the floor and said attaching mem- 'ber positivelyheld against withdrawal from its port upon the tiltingv of said casingin the opposite direction.

6. In a suction cleaner, the combination of a casing includingsuction-creating means, a nozzle at its forward end and communicatingwith said suction-creating means through a connecting passage, a portleading into said passage from 'the exterior of said casing, a convertermember adapted to be inserted into said port for olf-theoor cleaning,front and rear supporting wheels mounted beneath said casing, the rearwheels being journalled on a frame comprising a hollow beam extendingtransversely beneath said casing and pivotally supported at its ends, atorsion spring enclosed within said beam and acting 40 thereon in adirection to overcome the load normally carried by said rear wheels, anda barrier lever' extending at right angles from said beam and normallyadapted-to prevent the insertion of said converter member into saidport, said frame being rotative by pressure exerted upon the rear end ofsaid casing to effect the raising of said nozzle and the shifting ofsaid lever into a position to permit the insertion of said convertermember.

7. In a suction cleaner, the combination of a casing includingsuction-creating means, a nozzle at its forward end and communicatingwith said suction-creating means through a connecting passage, ,a portleading into said passage from the exterior of said casing, a convertermember adapted to be inserted into said port for off-thefloor cleaning,front and rear supporting wheels mounted beneath` said casing, the rearwheels being journalled on a frame comprising a beam extendingtransversely beneath said casing, a shaft extending lengthwise of saidbeam and fixed at its endsto said casing to form a pivotal mounting forsaid frame, torsion springs mounted on said shaft within said beam-andacting on said frame to counterbalance the load normally carried by saidrear wheels, and a barrier lever extending forwardly at right anglesfrom one end of said beam and normally positioned to prevent theinsertion of said converter member into said port, said frame beingrotative by pressure exerted downwardly at the rear end of said casingthereby to raisesaid nomle and ,to shift said barrier lever fromport-obstructing position below said port to permit the insertion ofsaid converter member, said barrier lever and converter member havingcoacting portions adapted to lock positively said Aconverter memberagainst withdrawal from its port during converter operation.

BERNARDC.

